Welder&#39;s helmet



H. BURMEISTER WELDERS HELMET Dec. 28, 1965 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Feb. 13. 1965 H. BURMEISTER WELDER'S HELMET Dec. 28, 1965 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Feb. l5, 1963 792m; fa/med 7%/- Dec. 28, 1965 H. BURMEISTER WELDERS HELMET 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Feb. l5, 1963 FIG. 7

United States Patent O 3,225,356 WELDERS HELMET Hans Burmeister, 2 Scharoldstrasse, Wurzburg, Germany Filed Feb. 13, 1963, Ser. No. 253,326 Claims priority, application Germany, Feb. 19, 1962, B 66,011 4 Claims. (Cl. 2 8) This invention relates to head protecting safety equipment, and more particularly to a welders helmet.

Welders helmets essentially consist of a face shield and of a head band or similar means for fastening the helmet to the wearers head. The face shield provides not only mechanical protection, but it is made of material substantially impervious to ultraviolet light and other portions of the light spectrum. A sight opening in the helmet permits the wearer to view the working area, but a cover of a lter material which largely blocks passage of the radiation emitted by the welding arc is placed over the sight opening and obscures the view.

In a known arrangement, the cover is movable on the helmet by means of an electromagnet in circuit with the welding machine to drop the cover automatically over the sight opening when the arc is energized, but permits it to be lifted otherwise. This arrangement is effective, but complex and expensive. The Welder is necessarily tied to the welding machine by a connecting cable which interferes with his free movements.

Helmets with manually movable lter covers have been repeatedly suggested in the past, but they have not found acceptance. The welders hands are almost continuously busy during his work, and are not available for the additional task of raising and lowering the cover.

The object of the invention is the provision of a welders helmet equipped with a movable filter cover for the sight opening, and with a simple actuating mechanism for moving the cover which does not rely on the welding machine or the welders hands.

A more specic object is a helmet with a cover which can be operated by the Welder without the use of his hands.

More specifically, the cover on the helmet of the invention is intended to be operated by a body portion of the wearer other than his hands.

With these and other objects in View, the invention in one of its aspects contemplates the provision of a helmet consisting essentially of a face shield and of fastening means for fastening the shield to the head of the wearer in a face protecting position. The face shield has a sight opening, and a cover of a filtering material substantially opaque to ultraviolet radiation is mounted on the shield for movement toward and away from an operative position in which the cover extends over the opening or at least a major portion thereof. The actuating mechanism for moving the cover is connected to control means which are movably mounted on the shield and extend from the shield toward the body of the wearer when the shield is worn in its face protecting position. 'Ihe actuating mechanism responds to movement of the control means by abutment against portions of the welders body to actuate movement of the cover relative to the shield.

Other features of the invention and many of the'advantages thereof will become apparent to those skilled in the art as the disclosure is made in the following detailed description of preferred embodiments of the invention as illustrated in the accompanying drawing in which:

FIG. 1 shows a welders helmet of the invention in front elevation;

FIG. 2 shows the helmet of FIG. l in side elevation;

FIG. 3 is a front elevational sectional view of a detail 3,225,356 Patented Dec. 28, 1965 ice of a helmet otherwise identical with that shown in FIGS. l and 2;

FIG. 4 shows a modification of another detail of the helmet of FIG. l in a sectional plan View;

FIG. 5 illustrates yet another modiiication of a detail of the helmet of FIG. '-1 in side-elevational section and on an enlarged scale;

FIG. 6 shows a further modilication of the detail of FIG. 5 in front elevation;

FIG. 7 is a rear elevational view of the face shield for a welders helmet of the invention, but without the fastening means for securing it to the head of a wearer;

FIG. 8 is a sectional side elevational view of the face shield of FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 is a plan View, partly in section, of a detail of the apparatus of FIG. 7; and

FIG. l() illustrates a modification of the device ot FIG. 9 in a corresponding view.

Referring now to the drawing in detail, and initially to FIGS. l and 2, there is seen a welders helmet consisting essentially of a face shield 1 and of a plastic perforated cap 2. The top portion of the shield is pivoted to the cap by means of two hand screws 3, 4 which can be manually tightened to prevent accidential counterclockwise movement of the shield as viewed in FIG. 2, and for securing the shield in the lifted position if so desired. A chin strap 46 has been omitted from the showing of FIG. l for the sake of clarity. As shown in FIG. 2, it extends in the space partly enclosed by the inner face of the shield 1, and holds the cap 2 to the top of the wearers head.

A frame 5 on the front or outer face of the shield 1 surrounds a rectangular sight lopening 6 in the shield 1. A frame 7 holding a glass filter plate 8 is fastened between two horizontally aligned pins 9, 10 journaled in the frame 5. In the operative position illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, the lter plate covers the opening 6 almost completely. The cover constituted by the frame 7 and lilter plate 8 may be swung to an inoperative position so that the lower portion of the frame 7 projects inward of the shield 1, and its upper portion projects outward.

The actuating mechanism for pivoting the frame 7 is generally shown at 11 in FIGS. 1 and 2, and will presently be described in more detail. An `actuating rod 12 links the mechanism 11 with an angularly bent lug 13 having a vertically elongated slot 14. As best seen from FIG. 2, the free end 15 of the pivot pin 10 is bent at right angles from the pin axis, and has an enlarged head 16. The pin end 15 passes through the slot 14, and is retained thereon bythe head 16.

The actuating mechanism 11 responds to the movement of a control device which extends downward from the mechanism 11 beyond the bottom portion of the shield 1 toward the body of the helmet wearer, and consists of an upper rod 17 and a lower rod 20 whose adjacent ends are threaded and connected by an internally threaded tube 18 bent to define an obtuse angle. The lower end of the rod 20 carries an abutment member 19 which is a small rubber ball.

Details of an actuating mechanism which differs from the mechanism 11 only in minor details, and may be substituted for the same in the helmet of FIG. 1, are shown in FIG. 3. Instead of the actuating rod 12, the mechanism of FIG. 3 includes a Bowden cable assembly the upper end of which is attached to the lug 13 in a conventional manner (not shown). It is identical with the mechanism 11 in all other respects.

The modified mechanism of FIG. 3 is enclosed in a sheet metal casing 21 which is attached to Ithe shield 1. The tube member 2S of the Bowden cable assembly is secured in a threaded opening at the top of the casing 21 by an externally corrugated nut 26. The internal member 23 of the assembly is fastened in the casing 21 to a plate member 22. A helical compression spring 24 coiled about the lower end of the internal member 23 urges the plate member 22 to move downward.

The lower portion of the plate member 22 extends outward through a slot in the bottom of the casing 21, and is attached to the aforementioned upper rod 17. One of the narrow vertical edges of the plate member 22 has two vertically spaced saw tooth notches 27, 28. In the position illustrated in FIG. 3, the notch 28 is engaged by an edge portion Z9 of the casing which consitutes a click partly confrming to the notch. A spring loaded pin 30 abuts against the other vertical edge of the plate member 22 and tends to engage the notches 27, 28 with the click 29.

Whether the actuating mechanism is equipped with a rigid rod 12 or with a Bowden cable assembly 23, 25, does not inuence the mode of operation of the apparatus so far described which is as follows:

When the Welder lowers his head, the rubber ball 19 engages a portion of his clothing above the chest. A brief rotation of the head next moves the rod 17 relative to the shield 1, and thereby to the casing 21 in the direction of the arrow A in FIG. 3. The click 29 is Withdrawn from the notch 28, and the pressure of the spring 24 moves the plate member 22 downward until the notch 27 is engaged by the click 29 under the urging of the spring loaded pin 30.

The resulting downward movement of the lug 13 causes the pin end to abut against the upper end of the slot 14, and the trarne 7 is pivoted from the illustrated operative position so as to uncover the sight opening 6.

The return of the plate member 22 to the position shown in FIG. 3, and the pivoting movement of the frame 7 from the inoperative toward the operative position take place when the Welder again nods his head, slightly lower this time, to overcome the restraint of the spring 24.

The helmet of FIGS. l to 3 can be adjusted to the body dimensions of the wearer, and to the part of the body with which it is intended to operate the helmet. The threaded engagement of the rods 17, permits not only the vertical spacing of the abutment member 19 from the shield 1 to be varied, but also the horizontal direction in which the lower end of the tube 20 extends from the axis of the upper rod 17. The rubber ball 19 may thus be brought into contact with either shoulder or the chest of the wearer.

The vertical length of the shield 1 is approximately determined by the average height of a human head which is to be protected. Undue vertical overhang of the shield in either direction would interfere with free movement and is to be avoided. The vertical distance over which the control device 17, 18, 19, 20 extends downward from the shield 1 thus must be between about one quarter and three quarters of the shield height to reach the upper body portion of the wearer. It would not be practical to have a ball 19 abut against a lower portion of the body.

In the device illustrated in FIG. 3, the control device has been shown to be suspended from the plate member `22. A different arrangement is illustrated in FIG. 4. A pin 32 is longitudinally slidable in a horizontal direction by movable engagement of its ends in two tubular sockets 33, 34 coaxially arranged in respective lateral portions of the shield 1 near the bottom thereof. A spring 33 in the socket 33 urges the pin toward the socket 34. The two ends of an otherwise straight bar 32 are bent at right angles and iixedly attached to the pin 32 near its ends. A sleeve 35 is adjustably xed on the bar 31. A connecting rod 36 links the sleeve 35 to the tube 18 on which a rubber ball 19 is directly attached. The lower end of a rod 17 is attached to the bar in the same manner as the connecting rod 36.

The support provided for the control device in an intermediate portion of its vertical length by the sockets 33, 34 makes a helmet of the invention equipped with the device shown in FIG. 4 particularly convenient to use. It will be understood that the rod 17 is connected to an actuating mechanism and to other elements of the helmet in the manner shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 with reference to rod 17.

A moditied actuating mechanism is illustrated in FIG. 5 together with its control device. A housing 41 mounted on the shield 1 in a manner not further illustrated carries a pivot pin 39 on which a two-armed lever 38 is supported. One arm of the lever 38 projects outward of the housing 41 and carries a control device consisting of a connecting rod 36, a tube 18, and a spherical rubber abutment 19 as previously described in connection with FIG. 4. The rod 36 is attached to the lever by the adjustable fixed sleeve 35. The other arm 40 is attached to a tension spring in the housing 41 which urges the lever to move clockwise from the position shown in FIG. 5. The end of the other lever arm constitutes a catch 43 which is received in a recess 44 defined by a curved portion of a flat spring 42 attached to the housing. The recess 44 is near the free lower end 45 of the spring 42.

A rod 37 attached to the other arm of the lever 38 near the catch 43 extends in a generally upward direction out ot the housing 12. Its upper end is hingedly connected to the actuating rod 12 which causes pivoting movement of the frame 7 as shown in FIG. 1.

The apparatus illustrated in FIG. 5 has the advantage of permitting operation of the frame 7 by mere nodding of the head without lateral movement or head rotation which may interfere with the welding work.

When upward pressure is exerted on the ball 19 by lowering of the head, and by abutting engagement of the ball 19 with the chest or the shoulders of the welder, the actuating rod 12 is pulled down to lift the lter plate 8 from the sight opening 6. The opening can be kept open by engaging the catch 43 in the recess 44 under the pressure of the spring 42. The lter plate 8 and the frame 7 are returned to their operative position by briefly pushing the ball 19 upward with respect to the housing 41, and then releasing it. The catch 43 is thereby brought rst into contact with the free end 4S of the spring 42, and then carried past the recess 44 lby the contracting spring 40, thereby covering the opening 6. The resilient properties of the springs 40 and 42 are suitably coordinated to prevent engagement of the catch 43 in the recess 44 during its swift upward motion.

The modified actuating mechanism illustrated in FIG. 6 includes a bellcrank lever consisting of two arms 47, 48 and pivoted on the shield 1 by means of a pin 52. The actuating rod 12 is attached to the arm 47, and a rod 49 is fastened to the arm 48. It is an element of a motion transmitting train which terminates in a nonillustrated rubber ball 19 in a manner evident from the preceding description.

The rod 49 is preferably made of soft metallic material, such as annealed steel, brass or copper still suiciently rigid to resist deformation under the normal operating stresses of the mechanism, but capable of being bent by hand to adapt the control mechanism to the body dimensions of the wearer, and to his preferences as to the body portion by means of which the cover in the face shield is to be operated. Adjustment of the spacing between the face shield and the non-illustrated rubber ball connected to the rod 49 is possible after loosening a wing nut 51 on a clamp 50 which secures the rod 49 to the lever arm 48.

The actuating mechanism shown in FIG. 6 is controlled by relative movement of head and body in the direction of the double arrow, that is, lateral movement or rotation of the head. It may be secured in the inoperative position against displacement by a non-illustrated return spring toward the operative position by a catch 53 rotatably mounted on the pin 52 and soldered to the lever arm 48 in a conventional manner not visible in FIG. 6. The catch 53 engages a recess formed by a flat spring 54 in the manner evident from FIG. 5. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the actuating mechanism illustrated in FIG. 6 may be employed without change to secure a frame 7 in the operative position if the frame is equipped with a return spring that urges it toward the inoperative position. Such reversal will merely require the actuating mechanism to be mounted on the internal face of the shield 1 and the free end 15 of a pivot pin to be rotated 180 from the position illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2.

An arrangement illustrative of a modification of the invention in which the actuating mechanism is arranged inside the shield is shown in FIGS. 7, 8 and 9 or 10.

Referring initially to FIG. 7, the face shield 1 of a welders helmet is shown from the inside. The cap 2, chin strap 46 and associated fastening means have been omitted for the sake of clarity. A pivot pin 57 journaled in the shield and in a bracket 58 carries a lever having a short arm 55 and a much longer arm 56. A nylon cord 59 threaded through guiding eyelets 60 on the `shield 1 connects the shorter lever arm 55 to the free end 15 of the pin 10. The cord 59 is tensioned by a spring 62 arranged between a transverse arm 61 on the pin 9 and the lower end of a threaded pin 63 which is freely movable in an opening of a bracket 64 attached to the shield 1. The axial position of the pin 63 and the resulting tension of the spring 62 are adjustable by rotating a nut 65 which threadedly engages the pin 63 above the bracket 64.

The angular movements of the lever arm 56 about an axis approximately parallel to the line of vision of the bearer are limited by a strap 66 whose ends are fastened to the shield 1 whereas its central portion is spaced from the shield so as to provide a passage for the lever arm 56, as better seen in FIGS. 8 and 9. A control rod 49 of the type described with reference to FIG, 6 is adjustably attached to the free end of the lever arm 56 and carries a rubber ball 19.

In order to pivot the filter plate 8 out of the sight opening of the face shield 1, the welder drops his head until the ball 19 touches his chest or shoulder. He then turns the head toward the right, whereby the lever 55, 56 is pivoted, and the cord 59 swings the filter plate 8 into the inoperative position. When he lifts his head, the spring 62 tends to close the opening. The pins 9, 10 are mounted in the embodiment of FIGS. 7, 8 above the center of gravity of the filter plate 8. The weight of the plate and of its frame which is not seen in these figures thus normally enhances the tendency of the plate 8 to drop into its operative position.

Stop devices for keeping the plate 8 of the apparatus of FIGS. 7 and 8 in the open or the closed position are illustrated in FIGS. 9 and 10. As shown in FIG. 9, a detent 67 having the cross sectional configuration of a rightangled triangle is fastened to the inner face of the strap 66. The detent 67 holds the lever arm 56 in such a position as to keep the sight opening free. The arm is released by the detent if the head of the Welder is moved slightly backward with respect to his chest or shoulders.

If it is desired to arrest the plate S in the operative position, the detent 67 is replaced by a detent 68 as shown in FIG. 10. The detent 68 is of a shape similar to detent 67 but reversed so that the face perpendicular to the face shield 1 is directed toward the location of the lever arm 56 in the operative condition of the filter plate 8. A leaf spring 69 urges the lever arm toward the strap 66 and away from the shield 1. The lever arm 56 is urged toward the inoperative position by a tension spring 70 of a force sufiicient to overcome the combined forces produced by the weight of the filter plate 8 and by the spring 62. The tension of the spring 70 may be adjusted by means of an adjusting screw 71.

When the rubber ball 19 is moved relative to the shield 1 in an outward direction, the lever arm 56 is moved against the leaf spring 69 until it clears the detent 68, and is then pulled toward the left, as viewed in FIG. 10,

6 to open the filter plate 8. To close the filter plate, the Welder lowers his head, and turns it to the left, whereby the lever arm 56 is returned to the position shown in FIG. 10.

While the invention has been described with reference to a welders helmet in which a filter plate is rotatable about an axis in such a manner that the filter plate swings inward and outward of the shield when moved from the operative to the inoperative position, the invention is not limited to the specific embodiments shown. Those skilled in the art will readily adapt the invention to Welders helmets in which the filter plate rotates in a plane parallel to the central shield portion, or to helmets in which the movements of the filter plate are translatory. The helmets of the invention also may be employed for purposes other than welding in the field of metallurgy and in other applications, and the term welders helmet as employed in this specification and the appended claims will be understood to be merely indicative of a field of application in which the device of the invention has outstanding utility.

T he advantages of the helmet of the invention include the simplicity of its operation by minor body movements which do not interfere with the welders work, and become almost sub-conscious after short use of the helmet. The mechanism for operating the filter plate does not rely on gravity, or on gravity alone, and is therefore effective when the Welder is in a prone position. The actuating mechanism and the associated controls do not significantly increase the weight or bulk of the helmet. The face shield may be swung upward on the pins 3, 4, and the helmet may be worn in the completely open position in the usual manner if so desired.

Obviously many modifications and variations of the present invention are possible in the light of the above teachings. It is therefore to be understood that within the scope of the appended claims the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described.

What I claim is:

1. In a Welders helmet, in combination:

(a) a face shield formed with a sight opening, said shield having a terminal top portion and a terminal bottom portion;

(b) fastening means on said shield for fastening said top portion to the head of a wearer in a face protecting position in which the line of vision of the wearer passes through said sight opening;

(c) a cover mounted on said shield for movement toward and away from an operative position in which said cover extends transversely of said line of vision over at least a major portion of said opening, and an inoperative position;

(d) a two-armed lever member pivoted on said shield for angular movement about an axis extending substantially in the direction of said line of vision;

(e) motion transmitting means connecting one arm of said lever member to said cover for moving said cover between said positions thereof when said lever member pivots about said axis;

(f) a control member mounted on the other arm of said lever member for angular movement therewith about ksaid axis and extending beyond said bottom portion a distance sufiicient for engagement with the chest of the wearer when the latter lowers his head; and

(g) stop means engageable with said other arm for limiting said angular movement of said lever member,

(1) said stop means including detent means for releasably locking said other arm in a position in which said cover is in one of said positions thereof, and

(2) said other arm being movable in the direction of said axis for release from said detent means,

(3) whereby said cover may be moved from said one position to the other position thereof by the wearer-lowering his head until the control member engages his chest, thereafter moving the head relative to the chest until the other arm of said lever member is released from said detent means, and then turning his head.

2. In a helmet as set forth in claim 1, said cover being pivoted on said shield for said movement between said positions, and yieldably resilient means urging said cover to pivot toward one of said positions thereof.

3. In a helmet as set forth in claim 1, means for varying the distance over which said control member extends beyond said bottom portion.

4. In a helmet as set forth in claim 1, resilient means permanently urging said lever member to pivot in a direction for moving said cover toward one of said positions thereof.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 4/ 1931 Greene 2 8 4/ 1932 Norton 2 8 9/ 1932 Norton 2 8 6/ 1944 Rickert 2 8 3/ 1947 Madson 2 8 4/1958 Malcon 2 9 7/ 1963 Radov 2 8 FOREIGN PATENTS 1/ 1945 Germany. 6/ 1952 Germany. 7/ 1935 Switzerland.

DAVID I.

WILLIAMOWSKY, Examiner. 

1. IN A WELDER''S HELMET, IN COMBINATION: (A) A FACE SHEILD FORMED WITH A SIGHT OPENING, SAID SHIELD HAVING A TERMINAL TOP PORTION AND A TERMINAL BOTTOM PORTION; (B) FASTENING MEANS ON SAID SHIELD FOR FASTENING SAID TOP PORTION TO THE HEAD OF A WEARER IN A FACE PROTECTING POSITION IN WHICH THE LINE OF VISION OF THE WEARER PASSES THROUGH SAID SIGHT OPENING; (C) A COVER MOUNTED ON SAID SHIELD FOR MOVEMENT TOWARD AND AWAY FROM AN OPERATIVE POSITION IN WHICH SAID COVER EXTENDS TRANSVERSELY OF SAID LINE OF VISION OVER AT LEAST A MAJOR PORTION OF SAID OPENING, AND AN INOPERATIVE POSITION; (D) A TWO-ARMED LEVER MEMBER PIVOTED ON SAID SHIELD FOR ANGULAR MOVEMENT ABOUT AN AXIS EXTENDING SUBSTANTIALLY IN THE DIRECTION OF SAID LINE OF VISION; (E) MOTION TRANSMITTING MEANS CONNECTING ONE ARM OF SAID LEVER MEMBER TO SAID COVER FOR MOVING SAID COVER BETWEEN SAID POSITIONS THEREOF WHEN SAID LEVER MEMBER PIVOTS ABOUT SAID AXIS; (F) A CONTROL MEMBER MOUNTED ON THE OTHER ARM OF SAID LEVER MEMBER FOR ANGULAR MOVEMENT THEREWITH ABOUT SAID AXIS AND EXTENDING BEYOND SAID BOTTOM PORTION A DISTANCE SUFFICIENT FOR ENGAGEMENT WITH THE CHEST OF THE WEARER WHEN THE LATTER LOWERS HIS HEAD; AND (G) STOP MEANS ENGAGEABLE WITH SAID OTHER ARM FOR LIMITING SAID ANGULAR MOVEMENT OF SAID LEVER MEMBER, (1) SAID STOP MEANS INCLUDING DETENT MEANS FOR RELEASABLY LOCKING SAID OTHER ARM IN A POSITION IN WHICH SAID COVER IS IN ONE OF SAID POSITIONS THEREOF, AND (2) SAID OTHER ARM BEING MOVABLE IN THE DIRECTION OF SAID AXIS FOR RELEASE FROM SAID DETENT MEANS, (3) WHEREBY SAID COVER MAY BE MOVED FROM SAID ONE POSITION TO THE OTHER POSITION THEREOF BY THE WEARER LOWERING HIS HEAD UNTIL THE CONTROL MEMBER ENGAGES HIS CHEST, THEREAFTER MOVING THE HEAD RELATIVE TO THE CHEST UNTIL THE OTHER ARM OF SAID LEVER MEMBER IS RELEASED FROM SAID DETENT MEANS, AND THEN TURNING HIS HEAD. 